History Film / NocturnalAnimals

* MsFanservice:
** Creator/AmyAdams has several moments of this, when we see Susan at home alone--mostly ShesGotLegs, with a ShowerScene and BathtubScene for good measure.
** Susan's daughter Samantha is introduced lying in bed completely naked, after presumably having sex with her boyfriend, with the audience getting a very good view [[ToplessnessFromTheBack of her backside]].
* MrFanservice: Creator/JakeGyllenhaal has a ShowerScene himself, as Tony.

* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: [[spoiler: Susan possibly aborting Edward's child, and him finding out about this, is the final straw where he stops trying to repair their relationship. Since she immediately expresses strong dislike of the idea, it's possible she didn't do it.]]

* TooDumbToLive: India - [[SarcasmMode go ahead and insult the drunk rednecks some more, that's a great idea!]]

* {{Fanservice}}:

** Creator/JakeGyllenhaal has a ShowerScene himself, as Tony.

* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: [[spoiler: Susan possibly aborting Edward's child, and him finding out about this, is the final straw where he stops trying to repair their relationship.]]

* MirandaRights: Ray demands to have his rights read to him which Detective Andes refuses to do.

* NeverMyFault: In the flashbacks, Edward seems completely incapable of taking any kind of criticism, whenever we see him. And in the end, it's strongly implied that he [[spoiler: puts all the blame on Susan for their relationship falling apart, and takes ''no'' responsibility for it, himself.]] His novel seems to suggest that he's changed.

* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: [[spoiler: Susan possibly aborting Edward's child, and him finding about about this, is the final straw where he stops trying to repair their relationship.]]

** India Menuez's only scene in this movie as Susan's daughter Samantha. She is introduced lying in bed completely naked, after presumably having sex with her boyfriend, with the audience getting a very good view [[ToplessnessFromTheBack of her backside]].

** India Menuez's only scene in this movie as Susan's daughter Samantha. She is introduced laying in bed completely naked, after presumably having sex with her boyfriend, with the audience getting a very good view [[ToplessnessFromTheBack of her backside]].

* LyingToThePerp: Detective Andes tries to get a confession out of Ray by mentioning that his comrade rated him out. It doesn't work.

%%* {{Revenge}}: The point of Edward's novel, in more ways than one. - ZCE

* WouldHurtAChild: [[spoiler: Tony's teenage daughter, India, is raped and suffocated by Ray and his friends.]]

* {{Revenge}}: The point of Edward's novel, in more ways than one.

* MutualKill: [[spoiler: How Tony and Ray's feud ultimately ends: Tony fatally shoots Ray who dies near instantly, but not before Ray strikes Tony in the head with a fireplace poker, causing Tony to die of a brain hemorrhage the next morning.]]

* JumpScare: [[spoiler: When Susan's coworker shows her iPhone nanny-cam, Susan looks at it when all of a sudden the leering face of Ray fills the screen with no warning whatsoever.]]

* MocksteryTale: There is a detective subplot (the storyline of Edward's novel), and a few surreal scenes blurring the edges between the two storylines (one of the hoodlums from the novel actually pops out at Susan in a cell phone video, causing her to drop the phone), but it's all just a FramingDevice for the story of Susan's relationship with Edward.

[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nocturnal_animals_6.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:''[[{{Tagline}} "When you love someone, you can't just throw it away."]]'']]

''Nocturnal Animals'' is a 2016 {{psychological thriller}} written and directed by fashion designer Tom Ford (''Film/ASingleMan''), based on the 1993 novel ''Tony and Susan'' by Austin Wright.

* AmbiguousSituation: Upon reading of [[spoiler: Tony and Det. Andes discovering the dead bodies of Laura and India]], Susan calls up her daughter. It's left unclear as to whether [[spoiler: the girl's father is Hutton or Edward.]] The circumstances of the call strongly imply the latter, but that also requires assuming that [[spoiler: Susan ultimately ''didn't'' go through with the abortion, and her conversation with Hutton involves her ''preparing'' to do so, but being scared out of it by seeing Edward.]]

* ColourWash: Scenes in the present day tend to be cold and desaturated, flashbacks are natural, and the film within the film is more saturated and harshly lit.

** India Menuez's only scene in this movie as Susan's daughter Samantha. She is introduced laying in bed completely naked, after presumably having sex with her boyfriend, with the audience getting a very good view of her backside.

* FictionalDocument: ''Nocturnal Animals'', Edward's novel.

* MatchCut: When Susan is reading ''Nocturnal Animals'' the novel, [[spoiler:and gets to the part where Laura and India's dead naked bodies are discovered laying on a couch]]. Afterwards in the real world, she calls her daughter, Sam, who is currently naked in bed with possibly her boyfriend.

* MatchCut: When Susan is reading ''Nocturnal Animals'' the novel, [[spoiler:and gets to the part where Laura and India's dead naked bodies are discovered laying on a couch;]] Afterwards in the real world, she calls her daughter, Sam, who is currently naked in bed with possibly her boyfriend.

* MatchCut: [[spoiler:In ''Nocturnal Animals'' the novel, Laura and India's dead naked bodies are discovered laying on a couch.]] In the real world, Susan calls her daughter, Sam, who is currently naked in bed with possibly her boyfriend.

* MatchCut: [[spoiler:In ''Nocturnal Animals'' the novel, Laura and India's dead naked bodies are discovered laying on a couch.]] In the real world, when Susan calls her daughter, Sam, who is currently naked in bed with possibly her boyfriend.

* {{Fanservice}}: Creator/AmyAdams has several moments of this, when we see Susan at home alone--mostly ShesGotLegs, with a ShowerScene and BathtubScene for good measure. Creator/JakeGyllenhaal has a ShowerScene himself, as Tony.

* FramingDevice: The bulk of the film's plot is a fictional tale written by Edward. * IncompatibleOrientation: Susan's gay brother Cooper had a crush on Edward in their youth.

* MocksteryTale: There is a detective subplot (the storyline of Edward's novel), and a few surreal scenes blurring the edges between the two storylines (one of the hoodlums from the novel actually pops out at Susan in a cell phone video, causing her to drop the phone), but it's all just a framing device for the story of Susan's relationship with Edward.

* FanDisservice: The opening credits of the film are set against a series of dancing naked women...who are all morbidly obese. On the other hand, there's also a scene of DropDeadGorgeous.

* FramingDevice: The bulk of the film's plot is a fictional tale written by Edward.
* FictionalDocument: ''Nocturnal Animals''.
* IncompatibleOrientation: Susan's gay brother Cooper had a crush on Edward in their youth.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: In the novel this film is based on, Ray is described as "a balding man with bucked teeth." In the movie, he's played by the young, ''very'' attractive Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

* AmbiguousSituation: Upon reading of [[spoiler: Tony and Det. Andes discovering the dead bodies of Laura and India]], Susan calls up her daughter. It's left unclear as to whether [[spoiler: the girl's father is Hutton or Edward.]] The circumstances of the call strongly imply the latter, but that also requires assuming that [[spoiler: Susan ultimately ''didn't'' go through with the abortion, and her MyGodWhatHaveIDone conversation with Hutton involves her ''preparing'' to do so, but being scared out of it by seeing Edward.]]

* CampGay: Carlos.

* {{Expy}}: Tony and his family are obviously intended as fictionalized versions of Susan, Edward, and their daughter.
** Susan may actually have ''two''. The other one is [[spoiler: '''Ray''']].
* FanDisservice: The opening credits of the film are set against a series of dancing naked women...who are all morbidly obese. On the other hand there's a scene with the very good-looking Ellie Bamber lying on a couch naked, with her nicely sculpted behind facing the camera - this would fit the below category a lot more if she wasn't the scene where her character (India Hastings) has just been raped and murdered.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Susan's mother is built up as a cold-hearted type who refuses to "understand" people who don't fit her standard (such as Cooper, for being gay). When we finally meet her...as cruel as her words of warning to Susan about marrying Edward sound, we already more-or-less know how it's turned out. And as the flashbacks progress, it's eerie just how point-for-point accurate those warnings actually prove to be!
* JumpScare: [[spoiler: When Susan's coworker shows her iPhone nanny-cam, Susan looks at it when all of a sudden the leering face of Ray fills the screen with NO warning whatsoever.]]

* [[spoiler: MutualKill]]: [[spoiler: How Tony and Ray's feud ultimately ends: Tony fatally shoots Ray who dies near instantly, but not before Ray strikes Tony in the head with a fireplace poker, causing Tony to die of a brain hemorrhage the next morning.]]

* NeverMyFault: Edward seems completely incapable of taking any kind of criticism, whenever we see him. And in the end, it's strongly implied that he [[spoiler: puts all the blame on Susan for their relationship falling apart, and takes ''no'' responsibility for it, himself.]]
** Then again, Tony, Edward's AuthorAvatar, [[spoiler: has a huge ItsAllMyFault breakdown near the end, despairing over how powerless he was to protect his family. This could be interpreted as Edward channeling his feelings about his failure to save his and Susan's relationship and the future they could have had together.]]

* ShoutOut: Probably unintentional, as the character names are from the book...but this isn't the first time Creator/AmyAdams [[Film/{{Enchanted}} has played a character whose first love was named "Edward".]]

* TakeThat: InUniverse. ''Nocturnal Animals'' is one to Susan, as her expies are both Laura and the [[spoiler: murderer and rapist Ray]].
** Susan appears to dish out a few thinly veiled insults to one of her associates at the art gallery, who's had some obvious plastic surgery done. The lady clearly wasn't amused.

* {{Allegory}}: Edward's novel, ''Nocturnal Animals'', is written as one for his tragic relationship with Susan,.

* Allegory: Edward's novel, ''Nocturnal Animals'', is written as one for his tragic relationship with Susan,.

* YourCheatingHeart: Hutton is implied to be cheating on Susan.

* FanDisservice: The opening credits of the film are set against a series of dancing naked women...who are all morbidly obese. On the other hand there's a scene with the very good-looking Ellie Bamber lying on a couch naked, with her nicely sculpted behind facing the camera - this would fit the below category a lot more if she playing a girl who's just been raped and murdered.